But it has been bugging me for a while, and since now I have both the time and means I googled the thing up.
It turns out, that the whole mystery had a really simple answer.
The first one would be, of course, to bring back snow and ice from its natural place. Like from mountains, or northern and southern parts of the world. I guess this must have been one hell of a job, since people had to build some really well insulated buildings and such, so the ice wouldn't melt until they got to their destination.
The second one was that people built ice houses, generally near a water source. The ice that formed in the winter was placed in this house, and then the whole thing was insulated really good, so those who had the money and the means could deliver and have ice all trough the year, until the next winter came.
The first one would be, of course, to bring back snow and ice from its natural place. Like from mountains, or northern and southern parts of the world. I guess this must have been one hell of a job, since people had to build some really well insulated buildings and such, so the ice wouldn't melt until they got to their destination.
The second one was that people built ice houses, generally near a water source. The ice that formed in the winter was placed in this house, and then the whole thing was insulated really good, so those who had the money and the means could deliver and have ice all trough the year, until the next winter came.
And then there are the places that have really low humidity, like the deserts. Ancient people dug pits in these places, and insulated them with straw. After this they placed the water inside, and covered the pit with really well polished shield, so the sun would heat it all up. And then, when the night came and the temperature dropped, they lifted these shields, so the hot air inside would lose its heat to the desert air.
Ingenious, isn't it?
And this brings us to the question of how did they make ice cream?
Cause, let's face it, people DID have ice cream before the ice cream machines and the freezers were invented.
Well, the answer is pretty simple. They made their ice cream mix, and chilled them with an ice bath. Then, they probably placed it in their insulated ice houses for about 30-60 minutes. When the edge of it started to freeze, they grabbed a spoon or a spatula or something and mixed it all together again, so the ice would be broken up.
Then they repeated this over and over again. It generally took about 3-4 hours for it to be ready.
Ingenious, isn't it?
And this brings us to the question of how did they make ice cream?
Cause, let's face it, people DID have ice cream before the ice cream machines and the freezers were invented.
Well, the answer is pretty simple. They made their ice cream mix, and chilled them with an ice bath. Then, they probably placed it in their insulated ice houses for about 30-60 minutes. When the edge of it started to freeze, they grabbed a spoon or a spatula or something and mixed it all together again, so the ice would be broken up.
Then they repeated this over and over again. It generally took about 3-4 hours for it to be ready.
(Sometimes they put their bowls of ice cream mix into another one that had ice and salt in it, and mixed the cream continuously until it froze with the help of a crane. In this case it took about an hour to make one and a half liters of ice cream, and it usually needed more than one people turning the crane.)
All right, here's another interesting question I've been wondering about. Why do women have clothes with buttons on the left, while men's clothes have it on the right?
Well, back in the time the buttons were invented not too many people could afford them. Yes, apparently, even buttons were designed for the rich. So, since the men dressed alone, they put their buttons on the right side so they could work on it better. Women, though, were usually dressed by their maids, so the buttons on their clothes were put on the left side - which would be the maid's right side.
Why hasn't this changed over time, though, I cannot answer.
Why hasn't this changed over time, though, I cannot answer.
All right, so today I definitely learned some new things. How about you? Have you guys ever wondered about things that now seem so ... normal, that you don't even question them? What are they? I might want to learn something new alongside you guys!
